


False Pretenses

by Aztecl



Series: Aztecl's Spring-Break-a-Bone-or-Two [3]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Aztecl's Spring-Break-a-Bone-or-Two, Betrayal, False Accusations, Friendly Fire, Gen, Inquisition, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 01:00:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30114720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aztecl/pseuds/Aztecl
Summary: AU of "Inquisition" where Bashir being accused of being a Dominion spy isn't just a simulated test brought on by Section 31. Instead, he's been arrested on Starfleet's orders.[Aztecl's Spring-Break-a-Bone-or-Two #3: Friendly Fire]
Relationships: Jadzia Dax & Kira Nerys, Julian Bashir & Odo, Kira Nerys & Benjamin Sisko, There's more but these peoples just have bigger interactions
Series: Aztecl's Spring-Break-a-Bone-or-Two [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2211519
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	False Pretenses

**Author's Note:**

> Spring-Break-a-Bone-or-Two is a whump prompted challenge I created because of my failures at completing last Whumptober and Febuwhump. It starts 3/15 and finishes on my final day of spring break from school, 3/19. Prompts can be found on the main series page.

_ Tell me about Doctor Julian Bashir. _

_ How long have you and him been friends? _

_ Has he been acting strange since his return from imprisonment at Internment Camp 371? _

_ Did he react violently to the reveal of his genetic resequencing? _

The interrogation had gone on and on for two hours, and it didn't take much more than a fool for Miles O'Brien to realize Sloan thought Bashir a traitor.

Every single question had been about him. Their friendship. Bashir's genetic enhancements. His time at 371. Hell, O'Brien thought most of the questions were too obscure to answer. How was he supposed to know what Bashir was like at Starfleet Academy? Of course, Sloan would only make a small sound of acknowledgement before typing something on a PADD and changing the subject to yet another thing related to Bashir.

At least he'd been able to send out a small transmission to him. O'Brien had managed a warning before the monitor went black and the line cut.

There'd been no news for a while, he realized. How was Bashir and the rest of the crew doing with their interrogations? O'Brien hoped that maybe the senior staff were merely being asked about each other, and maybe Sloan and Starfleet Security hadn't singled out the good doctor as the cause of their breach. Either way, there would still be an internal problem in security, but O'Brien much preferred the version where his best friend wasn't being falsely accused of being a traitor.

Suddenly, there was a chime at the door before it slid open to reveal Major Kira. Her expression was grim, eyes hollow of any additional information towards their stuation.

"Major!" O'Brien said. "What's happened?"

"Julian's been arrested," she replied with a tone of urgency in her voice. "Sloan thinks he's a Dominion spy."

He swallowed in a dry mouth. "What? Starfleet can't do that! Where's Julian now?"

Kira motioned for him to follow her. O'Brien quickly stood and almost tripped over his feet in his haste to just  _ do something.  _ His recently fixed shoulder still ached with the sharp movement.

He'd been confined to quarters all day while his best friend was charged with treason. There couldn't possibly be evidence indicating Bashir, he thought. There must be false information to frame someone else for the security breach, and this was all just one big cover up for the enemy. It was a game of cat and mouse that Bashir had somehow gotten manipulated into unwillingly playing.

Together, they half-ran through the corridors of Deep Space Nine until they made it to the Promenade. 

O'Brien's face fell when he realized why it was more crowded on the edges of the Promenade while plenty of space remained in the middle aisle. He spotted his fellow senior staff closest to where Bashir was being escorted in  _ shackles  _ to Odo's office. O'Brien came to an abrupt stop to watch the scene simply play out. An entourage of security guards trailed around Bashir as they practically marched by.

Their eyes met. O'Brien thought he detected a note of fear in Bashir's hazel ones, but the doctor looked away too quickly for him to gauge any inner turmoil. However, Bashir didn't look down. He stared into the faces of those he passed, almost as if he were silently pleading his innocence with the people who'd become his friends and patients.

The normally bustling crowd was quiet. But then again, O'Brien had gone numb to the world around him. He was far too focused on the fact that Bashir was being treated as a criminal by his own government. He would be marked as guilty until otherwise proven innocent. The system, while fair and reasonable, irked O'Brien and vaguely reminded him of his own Cardassian trial. That had actually been unfair, he thought. This was nothing, for Bashir would be found innocent.

He had no doubt in his mind.

* * *

"So, what?" Kira asked, gritting her teeth. "We're supposed to just let him get arrested and branded a traitor?"

Sisko, who was pacing his office for the umpteenth time that day, paused. "Sloan has a proper arrest warrant from Starfleet. Frankly, I disagree with his reasons, but there's also nothing I can do unless new evidence crops up that Bashir is innocent."

"Let me guess, Captain. This is an 'internal affair of Starfleet' and I have no jurisdiction?"

"Spot on," he said. "I've tried to convince Sloan that Odo could help in the investigation, but he seems to trust the Constable as much as he trusts Doctor Bashir."

Which was reasonable, Kira thought. Wartime brought nothing but death, bloodshed, and feelings of suspicion. Even worse, the Federation was on the opposing side of Odo's people. It didn't make Odo look credible or trustworthy of leading an ongoing investigation of their inner security networks.

Kira still trusted him, and she always would.

"Fine," she sighed, turning to leave Sisko's office.

"And Major?" Sisko's voice sounded sharp yet sincere. "Promise me you'll stay away from the investigation. I don't want to potentially lose two of my senior staff - two of my friends."

"I… I promise, Captain. I won't interfere with Starfleet's internal affairs."

Kira spun on her heel and walked out, the door already being open a crack. She had done it deliberately so that Dax and O'Brien could listen in from their posts in Ops, at least if they strained their ears.

O'Brien was watching her, a question in his slightly bloodshot eyes. She wondered if worrying about Bashir took up all his time - instead of sleeping, he thought about his friend; while eating, he thought about sharing meals and drinks with Bashir in Quark's as they prattled on about darts or holosuites or racquetball.

Kira took her place next to Dax, who motioned with a shoulder roll that Worf clearly disapproved of their eavesdropping. The Klingon looked completely stoic to Kira. He wasn't glaring yet he wasn't smiling, instead maintaining an even look that gave away nothing. She knew him better, however, and realized he was mad at something. Whether that was the injustice of Sloan's accusations, Bashir himself, or the Dominion, Kira hadn't any clue.

"Are you really going to stay away?" Dax whispered accusingly.

Kira continued looking at her console, feigning checking the long range scanners. "I don't have much of a choice. Sisko's right: my involvement can make it look worse for both Julian and the Provisional Government."

"I ran into Sloan earlier," Dax said. "He wouldn't even let me  _ visit _ Julian. He's—"

"Dax," O'Brien interrupted, loudly. 

Kira and Dax turned to look at him. Behind O'Brien, the turbo lift stopped and out walked Sloan.

"Can you give me a hand for a minute?"

"Of course, Chief," Dax replied, leaving Kira's side and passing Sloan on her way to O'Brien's station.

They began to talk quietly about what Kira assumed was nothing. While yes, things did break down a lot on DS9, she knew he had created a problem simply for the sake of warning them Sloan had walked in. Worf's disapproval for eavesdropping was one thing, but being caught red-handed by the person you're talking about was a recipe for disaster.

"Excuse me, Major Kira," Sloan said, "but is the captain in his office?"

Kira nodded. "Go ahead, Deputy Director."

He gave her a once over before looking at her console. A shadow passed over his face, making his bright blue eyes look much darker.

"May I inquire as to what you're working on?"

Kira's gaze flickered to where he was looking. "Oh, well, I was just about to take my break, maybe go to the Replimat for a late lunch."

"Enjoy your lunch, Major." Sloan smiled, but it didn't quite meet his eyes.

She watched him enter Sisko's office. As soon as he was gone, she swallowed the lump in her throat and eyed Dax and O'Brien doing something similar. None of them wanted to relax in the presence of Deputy Director Sloan. All of the verbal, friendly fire shot in their conversations required both a heavy heart and a tight grip. Fortunately, Kira was well armed on ammunition.

"Internal affairs, my ass," she hissed to Dax and O'Brien. "Doctor Bashir treats both Federation citizens  _ and _ Bajorans. As long as he's held on this station, the Provisional Government has authority."

"Remember what you promised Benjamin, Kira," Dax said half-heartedly. 

"I would say don't do anything stupid," O'Brien grumbled, "but personally, I'm about two steps from it."

Kira opened her mouth to say something, then changed her mind. She boarded the turbo lift and made her way towards the habitat ring. 

It wasn't that she was skipping lunch. No, the problem was Doctor Bashir, or the lack thereof. Kira found it amusing how he and Garak would discuss literature in the Replimat, arguing about every little thing that she'd normally overlook in favor of actually having something worth reading. The only stories she had growing up were old Bajoran prayers to the Prophets, tales passed down for generations. New stories had cropped up during the Occupation, too, when the nights ran long and their hope was diminishing like a flickering candle.

But they always relit the flames and kindled them stronger than before, smoke billowing like flags to be seen high above the cerulean skies of Bajor.

* * *

_ He had long lost track of each individual second, having completely tuned out the sound of ticking that seemed to echo amidst the hollowness he felt. Hell, he wasn't entirely sure which way was up and which way was down. Left and right practically became synonyms in his mind. Only when the cell door finally swung open, allowing light to spill into the room, did he gather his bearings. _

_ Two Jem'Hadar lifted him to his feet. He wasn't sure he could stand, but he somehow managed to make it up from where he sat on the floor. He held his head high as he marched back towards Martok and his other cellmates.  _

_ He hadn't seen them in days. How long had he been confined to solitary? He knew he was losing it when even his genetically enhanced internal clock couldn't keep up. However, a gut feeling told him it was five days. He decided to trust that. After all, one couldn't be too picky with their allies in a Dominion prison, especially if push came to shove. _

Bashir awoke from his nightmare slowly, seemingly still detached from the reality of his situation. 

He thought Internment Camp 371 was bad. He thought he was prepared for any sort of imprisonment, having dealt with the Jem'Hadar during wartime. Those thoughts nagged at him now - because nothing could prepare Bashir for being branded a traitor by his own people, by the organization he had served since his days at the Academy. It sickened him even though he knew their suspicions did have a certain degree of reason to them.

For 37 days, Bashir had been held prisoner. What truly happened in that time? No one knew except himself, although his cellmates technically only had a five day gap from when he was in solitary confinement for his apparent misconduct.

Did he have gaps in his memory like that? Sloan said Bashir could be compartmentalizing his betrayal and joining of the Dominion. So no, everything in his mind was intact. Some of it was just a little lost, that's all. But Bashir didn't really want to find it. He almost believed the accusations against him were true, and then what would happen? 

The lack of a combadge on his uniform felt wrong. The still presence of two Starfleet, golden pips on Bashir's collar felt the exact opposite. Deep down, he knew he was supposed to be in Starfleet just like he knew he was supposed to practice medicine, even if it was illegal for him to continue any of it.

With the fear of prosecution eating away at him, Bashir brought his knees to his chest and lowered his head.

He must have fallen asleep, for the next time he stirred and looked up, the force field on his cell was open. Sloan stood there alone, unusually not being accompanied by officers donning the golden colors of Starfleet security.

But there was something odd about him. At least, to Bashir. Sloan's cheeks looked hollow and more flushed than they had the day before. His ears seemed more twisted, hair slicked back with what must have been an unnecessary amount of hair gel. Bashir chalked it up to his own exhaustion. Maybe he was finally cracking and going insane, opting to study the obscure yet innocuous details of everything around him. After all, a  _ normal  _ person probably wouldn't be able to notice such unimportant things.

"What's the verdict?" Bashir asked.  _ "Sir."  _

Sloan didn't answer right away. Instead, his head turned left to right as if he were taking in everything about the grey simplicity of Cardassian architecture. He made a small sound that Bashir thought to be a vague impression of Odo. 

"Doctor," Sloan greeted. "Congrats, you're a free man."

Well, he certainly hadn't expected that. Bashir didn't even bother with trying to hide his confusion.

"S-sir?"

"Constable Odo and the Provisional Government spoke on your behalf. They negotiated with Starfleet to release you from our custody."

"What happened to me being a Dominion spy?" Bashir untucked his knees and stood to his full height.

"Is that a confession, Doctor?" Sloan shot back.

"Not at all," he replied. "But excuse me if I'm having a hard time believing that after all these interrogations and accusations, you're just going to let me walk away."

Sloan looked around again. If Bashir didn't know any better, he would have said the man felt uneasy around him.

"We're short on time. Walk with me."

"Yes sir," Bashir said wryly, before realization struck him: he didn't know where they were going. "Wait—"

"Time is of the essence, Doctor," Sloan interrupted while already walking away. "Come now, I promise I will fill you in on the way."

Bashir quickened his pace to catch up to him. He found it odd that there were no security officers in sight of his cell, and even more weird that Starfleet had given in so easily. They had an arrest warrant with his name on it. Legally, they had the right to arrest one Julian Subatoi Bashir.

Sloan harrumphed. "This is a Bajoran station, meaning any alleged crimes that took place here automatically fall under the Provisional Government's control. Starfleet will adhere to that."

"I'm afraid I still don't understand."

"No one ever completely understands, Doctor."

They fell into a thick and uncomfortable silence. Now that he was standing closer to Sloan, Bashir realized the man's skin was waxy and pale. It also seemed to lack a lot of wrinkles and features of a person in their older years - like everything about him and his most recent actions of freeing Bashir went far too smooth for comfort. And the ears. They more-so resembled Odo's than a human's… 

"Odo!" Bashir felt his eyes widen into saucers.

Sloan - Odo - rolled his eyes. "Took you long enough. Hurry, I wasn't kidding when I said time is short." 

"We're heading for the docking ring, aren't we? You're helping me escape Starfleet's custody."

"So is Major Kira," Odo said. "She said, and I quote, 'Screw Starfleet'. There was also something along the lines of the Provisional Government being in charge here."

"She's not technically wrong," Bashir muttered.

Bashir climbed the stairs behind Odo. In his office, the doctor spotted the security guard on duty dragged behind the desk. He looked at Odo, who shrugged.

"Why'd you knock him out if you decided to shapeshift into Sloan?"

"Because I realized he would notice your cell door opening. I had to add a last minute change to this plan, especially since Starfleet made it a lot harder to beam out prisoners directly from their cells."

Bashir headed for the doors leading to the Promenade, where he assumed it was nighttime due to the lack of people moving about their daily business.

However, Odo stopped him before the doors could slide open.

"Chief O'Brien will beam you from my office and onto a transport ship that departs in a few minutes. You will have only a supply bag prepared by Lieutenant Dax. The captain of this vessel owes her a favor, so he's promised to take you away from here and into distant space in the Alpha Quadrant, later dropping you off on a highly populated planet.

"The order for your arrest has not been made public yet, Doctor," Odo continued. "When it does…"

"I will be public enemy number one of the Federation and will need to go on the run," Bashir finished. 

He realized he'd be saying goodbye to Deep Space Nine - his home. He would embark upon the life of a fugitive. To start anew, light years away from his friends and family, possibly with a new identity entirely. Bashir would practically cease to exist, just like Jules all those years ago.

"I… I guess this is goodbye, Odo."

Odo bowed his head. "I wish you the best of luck."

"Thank you," Bashir said, his eyes burning. "You've saved me from what could've been a life sentence in a maximum security prison, a life in which I'm stripped of my rights as a human being. I don't know how I can ever repay you."

"Live, Doctor. Don't make my efforts all for naught."

He allowed himself to chuckle. "You're starting to sound like Garak, Constable. And on that note, tell…" he paused. "Can you tell everyone that I love them? That they meant - and still mean - the whole world to me?"

"Certainly," Odo said. He then tapped his combadge and told Chief O'Brien, "Energize."

As he began to dematerialize, that odd tingling sensation spreading throughout, Bashir looked around one last time at the life he could never get back. His world had flipped upside down, and there was no way to reverse the damage. Instead, he could only live with it as a ghost of a past he'd once known.

**Author's Note:**

> I feel as if I should explain a few things about this fic:
> 
> 1) I've portrayed Odo here as being able to shapeshift into another person, in this case, Sloan. I know that in canon, it's quite the struggle. That's why he made evident mistakes with certain features of Sloan, later tipping off Bashir to his real identity.
> 
> 2) Technically, yes, O'Brien disobeyed orders to cooperate with the investigation by transporting an escaped criminal (Bashir) off the station. I didn't cover this in my fic, however, Kira is a higher rank than him, and can give him orders to follow. Should those cancel out the first ones? Probably not, I don't care. Either way, she did play a large involvement in the whole conspiracy of helping Bashir escape. She's not Starfleet. If that argument made sense you can call me The Negotiator.
> 
> 3) DS9 is a Bajoran station, thus the Provisional Government would have jurisdiction on any crimes committed on board, especially if it affects them. In this case, they would be losing, like, literally the only doctor aboard the station who treats a lot of Bajorans. Back off, Starfleet. *Growls like Worf*
> 
> 4) Section 31 doesn't really exist in this AU. Sloan is actually who he claims to be in the episode, something-something deputy director in whatever branch of Starfleet.
> 
> 5) I portrayed both Starfleet and the Federation, for all intents and purposes of this fic, as kinda being quick to judge. They arrest Bashir and pretty much prosecute him on alleged charges yet to be reviewed and confirmed. I'm perfectly aware that neither organizations are evil (even if there's a few hiccups here and there). I simply wrote them that way because it's fanfiction and I have infinite power over everything and everyone.
> 
> 6) That whole bit with not being able to beam out of holding cells and Odo knocking that one guy out? Yeah, I'm sure that made sense. But screw it. I wrote three thousand words in one day and I don't have time to worry about it. Time is of the essence.
> 
> 7) The first paragraph of Bashir's POV is actually an excerpt from another fic I have, titled "You Tread On My Dreams".
> 
> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are greatly appreciated. :)


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